Gun laws in Thailand to be discussed by House committee

An upcoming meeting of the House Committee on Police Affairs will address gun control measures in the wake of the daycare centre massacre just days ago. The vice chairman of the committee who serves as the deputy secretary-general of the Democrat Party announced plans to consider several actions to allow more responsible gun ownership in Thailand.

One idea on the table is to make licenses for gun owners in Thailand valid for only two or three years. That way owners would have to re-qualify and re-register for their licenses. Another point of discussion is steps to make legal access to guns more difficult.

The Democratic party leader visited the local police station in Na Klang District to offer support to the police and learn more about the situation on the ground following the massacre in which 24 students and 14 others lost their life. The daycare centre killer committed his murder spree with a legally obtained firearm.

The next committee meeting will discuss the massacre and action that can be taken to help prevent anything like that from happening again, according to Thai PBS World. They will look at immediate actions that can be taken as well as long-term legislation to curb gun violence and enact more feasible controls for registered guns in Thailand.

They plan to examine the gun welfare program of the Interior Ministry, along with questions about gun possession and ownership, and gun control. They will discuss the penalties for illegal gun possession, as well as ideas to educate people in Thailand more about gun laws and safety.

A 2017 Small Arms survey based in Switzerland revealed some alarming statistics about guns in Thailand. About 36,000 crimes that year involved an unlicensed or illegal gun. That’s about 77.5% of all serious crimes in the country. The study estimated that there are about four million illegal guns within the kingdom. A total of 10 million guns are privately owned in Thailand including those illegal ones.

The committee vice-chairman said she was shocked by the data in this study and called for a closer look at the issue. She vowed to press the issue at the next house meeting using her position what’s the vice chair.

“It is about time that all parties concerned sat down for talks to discuss the problem.”